High Cheese

The prevailing opinion as teams try to acquire Houston pitcher Roy Oswalt has been that any team would need to pick up Oswalt's $16 million for 2012 in order for him to waive his no-trade clause.

That might not be the case, Oswalt said yesterday.

“The money part I can work out with anybody, that’s no big deal,” Oswalt told reporters, according to the Houston Chronicle. “We can work on doing different things as far as restructuring; whatever they want to do.

“I’m going to find a way to get it done if it works for both of us. I’m not going to go somewhere that’s going to be bad for me.”

Oswalt's name has been linked to the Phillies, among other teams, but St. Louis was perceived to the be the favorite because it is close to his boyhood home in Missouri. Oswalt indicated staying in the Midwest was not a prerequisite, either. Of course, by limiting the field, Oswalt could hurt his chances of moving.

“It helps for sure,” Oswalt said. “Family gets to watch me a little bit more. But anywhere you go, you’re still a six- to seven-hour drive.”

And Oswalt gave this direction his agent Bob Garber, after Oswalt was briefed yesterday on where things stood.